After helping his old buddies reclaim their honor, the group left the training ground, feeling thoroughly satisfied when they saw the defeated expression on the bald guy's face as he left.
Owen understood that a bit of competition between the two squads was actually healthy—it pushed both sides to improve. The FBI supervisor Womack surely thought the same. The problem was the bald guy's arrogance. He acted like being ex-Delta Force made him untouchable. Well, now he'd been taught a lesson—hopefully it would humble him.
As for their identities, let him check all he wanted. Monica was officially a former member of A Squad, and though Owen hadn't formally been part of it, he had trained with them for a time. Their credentials were airtight.
SWAT held a lot of good memories for Owen. It was here that he learned quick-draw skills and explosives training from Heatseeker. It was here that Monica had beaten him up with Krav Maga. He'd secretly picked up those techniques from both her and ASH. It was also here that he had first learned rapid-fire shooting, which became the foundation of his own marksmanship.
They spent the whole morning chatting with old friends. Near noon, Owen took his leave—he had plans to visit Old Man George with Carlos, while Monica stayed behind.
On the way, Owen picked up a few fine bottles of liquor, but as soon as they entered George's place, the old man surrendered instantly. He'd drunk so much the night before—being the center of attention and all—that he couldn't even remember how he got home. Now, just the smell of alcohol made him gag.
Too bad for Owen; those bottles weren't cheap—more than enough to cover that "unwritten" traffic fine.
Owen stashed the bottles in the liquor cabinet and played with George's new family member—the stray dog, now affectionately named Dumb Dog.
The dog looked much cleaner; George had clearly given it a bath. And despite the name, it wasn't dumb at all. It sensed the powerful aura from Owen and Carlos and stayed perfectly quiet, letting them roughhouse it as they pleased.
The three men sat in the living room drinking tea—yes, actual Chinese tea. It had been a gift from Javier, said to be quite expensive. But George couldn't taste the difference, and neither Owen nor Carlos were connoisseurs, so they guzzled it like it was soda, enjoying the novelty more than the flavor.
After leaving George's house, Carlos offered to drive Owen home. Since Owen had left the car with Monica at SWAT, he had to hitch a ride.
They were mid-ride when Owen's phone rang. He answered. It was Chloe.
"Owen, there's something I need to inform you about."
"What is it?"
Chloe continued, "West Hollywood PD just received a report. A young woman claims her boyfriend's been kidnapped."
Owen raised an eyebrow. Why would Chloe bother him with a kidnapping case?
Then she added, "The woman said her boyfriend is a member of SEAL Team Six."
"What?" Owen thought he'd misheard.
"You heard right. SEAL Team Six."
"Where's the location?"
"** Street, number **. Local officers are en route."
"Got it."
Owen gave Carlos the address, and Carlos immediately kicked into high-speed mode.
"You need backup, man?" Carlos asked while gunning the engine.
"No, I'm good. You take care of your stuff," Owen replied.
Carlos had just received a call from Simon—probably another job. Owen told him to just drop him off at the scene.
Once Owen got out, Carlos drove away. At the front of an old apartment building, local police were already there, taking statements. CTU's Joshua was also present. Owen joined him.
Technically, this wasn't CTU's jurisdiction. If a SEAL got kidnapped, it was either a police matter or the Navy's problem. Unless terrorism was involved, CTU could've ignored it.
But Tony, sensing there might be more to the story, had sent a field agent to take a look. And sure enough, something smelled off.
SEALs have strict confidentiality rules. They're forbidden from casually revealing their identities, especially those from SEAL Team Six. Given the nature of their missions, they're prime targets for retaliation.
Of course, it's hard to target a SEAL. They usually live on base, and their families are housed in secure military communities. It's a tight fortress.
Seeing Owen approach, Joshua stepped over.
"What's the situation?"
"I just got here too," Joshua said, and gave a quick summary: "According to the woman who reported it, she and her boyfriend—whom she recently started dating—had just had dinner and returned to his place to engage in, well, a bit of cardio. She was in the bathroom shaving when a group of masked men burst in. They didn't say a word—just started attacking. They were armed and moved fast. They grabbed him and left. Didn't even search the place, so she managed to stay hidden."
Owen frowned as he listened. By then, the officers had finished taking her statement. One of them recognized Owen and came over.
"Hey, Bernie. You on duty today?" Owen greeted.
"Yep. A SEAL Team Six member getting kidnapped? Could be a terrorist revenge thing. You guys taking over?" Bernie asked.
They fist-bumped like old friends.
"Still assessing. Got any leads?"
"Not yet. But your guy probably filled you in. The woman was smart—she recorded part of it while hiding in the bathroom. You might want to take a look. If you guys take this over, we'd be happy to hand it off."
Owen shrugged and followed Bernie and the woman over to watch the video on her phone.
She'd cracked the bathroom door just a bit and recorded everything. Thanks to the lighting, it was surprisingly clear. The footage was short but crucial.
In it, a man wearing only underwear was being violently beaten by several masked men. After knocking him down, they pinned him. The presumed leader grabbed the man's hair, compared his face to a photo, said something, then they started dragging him away.
In a panic, the man began screaming and thrashing, managing to yank off the leader's hood. He was immediately punched in the gut and silenced.
That moment—the hood coming off—was the key. They watched the footage several times, questioning the woman along the way.
As the clip replayed, Owen's expression grew darker. Eventually, his suspicions solidified. He took the phone, stopped the playback, and slid it into his pocket.
"Alright. CTU is taking this case."
"Excellent," Bernie said with a laugh. "The task of saving the world is in your hands now."
He was relieved. Anything involving military personnel—especially a SEAL—was bound to get messy. Having CTU take over made things simpler.
"Bernie, do me a favor. Don't notify the military for another hour."
"Sure, no problem."
By regulation, the police or CTU had to notify the military if a service member was involved—especially a SEAL. But Owen had recognized the unmasked man in the video: a mid-level Al-Qaeda operative. Not on any global most-wanted list, but definitely flagged by CIA and CTU watchlists. This was a premeditated act of revenge. Terrorists had abducted a SEAL.
This meant the case officially fell under counterterrorism. CTU—specifically Omega Division—had first-priority authority.
However, the other party was the military. And unlike CIA or NSA, the military played by different rules. Presidential orders hadn't granted Omega authority over the Pentagon. If the military wanted in, Omega would have no power to stop them.
Owen's one-hour delay was a strategic move—to buy Omega Division precious time.
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